1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to medical devices, and more particularly, to endotracheal devices, such as endotracheal tubes and cuffs.
2. Description of the Related Art
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
In the course of treating a patient, a tube or other medical device may be used to control the flow of air, food, fluids, or other substances into the patient. For example, medical devices such as tracheal tubes may be used to control the flow of one or more substances into or out of a patient. In many instances it is desirable to provide a seal between the outside of the tube or device and the interior of the passage in which the tube or device is inserted. In this way, substances can only flow through the passage via the tube or other medical device, allowing a medical practitioner to maintain control over the type and amount of substances flowing into and out of the patient.
For example, tracheal tubes may be used to control the flow of air or other gases through a patient's trachea. Such tracheal tubes may include endotracheal (ET) tubes, tracheostomy tubes, or transtracheal tubes. To seal these types of tracheal tubes, an inflatable cuff may be associated with these tubes. When inflated, the cuff generally expands into the surrounding trachea to seal the tracheal passage around the open lumen of the tube.
As many patients are intubated for several days, healthcare workers may need to balance achieving a high-quality tracheal seal with possible patient discomfort. Typical cuffs may be divided into low pressure cuffs and high pressure cuffs on the basis of their respective intracuff pressures after cuff inflation. High pressure cuffs are typically made of highly elastic materials that may form a relatively smooth seal against the trachea. However, these highly elastic materials are relatively fragile, and may form tears or leaks. In order to overcome this disadvantage, these cuffs are typically manufactured with thicker walls. The thicker walls are in turn associated with higher inflation pressures, as lower pressures are insufficient to overcome the natural initial resistance of the cuff material to stretching. Thus, high pressure cuffs are often inflated to at least twice the intracuff pressure of lower pressure cuffs. Because higher cuff pressures are associated with patient discomfort, physicians are often reluctant to inflate such high pressure cuffs fully in order to achieve an optimal seal. The mechanical pressure of the cuff against the tracheal walls may also cause temporary damage to cilial structures in the trachea that are associated with airway particle clearance. Thus, cilial injury may result in a temporary decrease in a patient's ability to remove bacteria or other foreign particles from the trachea.
While low pressure cuffs may be used to avoid patient discomfort, these low pressure cuffs may be associated with a lower quality cuff seal against the trachea. Although low pressure cuffs are generally made from more robust materials that are less elastic than high pressure cuffs, such cuffs may not achieve the smooth sealing surface associated with high pressure cuffs. For example, low cuff inflation pressures may be associated with allowing folds to form in the walls of the low pressure cuff that may serve as leak paths for air as well as microbe-laden secretions. In order to fit a range of trachea anatomies with a given size of tracheal tube, cuff diameters of low pressure cuffs are usually about one and a half times the diameter of the average trachea. Therefore, when inserted in an average-sized trachea, such a cuff is unable to fully expand and will fold in on itself within the trachea. These folds may serve as leak paths that allow microbe laden secretions to flow past the cuff and enter the lung.